Valerie Stroh Movies

Cesar award-winning actor Jean-Pierre Darroussin makes his feature directorial debut with this satirical tale about a well-to-do Parisian lawyer who takes flight from the middle class. Charles Benesteau (Darroussin) is a forty seven year old lawyer who has grown tired of bourgeois hypocrisy. The husband of a terminally pretentious art maven, Charles leaves behind his marriage and comfortable house for a modest apartment on a multi-ethnic, working class neighborhood. Though at first his new, low-rent lifestyle brings Charles a level of happiness never achieved in his posh old neighborhood, things quickly turn chaotic when his feuding neighbors stick him with their troubled teenage daughter as they wage World War 3 behind paper-thin walls. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

A woman learns to care for others when she's forced to help people on the wrong side of the law in this drama. Marie-Line (Muriel Robin) is a single woman in her mid-forties who oversees the cleaning crew at a large office building. On the job, Marie-Line is all business, with no patience for laziness and no tolerance for employees who do less than a perfect job. But Marie-Line's bosses are in the midst of a money crunch and they've cut back on her budget, so when several of her employees quit, she has to find new cleaners willing to work for a lower wage. Marie-Line soon finds new workers willing to work hard for low pay, but there's a catch -- most of them are illegal aliens, smuggled into France from Africa, Albania, or the Middle East, and when police begin asking questions about Marie-Line's new cleaners, she has to scramble to cover for them. Marie-Line also discovers that many of her new hires have children they can't afford to leave with sitters or day care, so she finds herself helping to look after the kids, which brings out a compassionate side of her that she has spent much of life trying to keep hidden. Muriel Robin's performance in Marie-Line earned her a Best Actress nomination at the 2001 Cesar Awards (the French Academy Awards). ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

When a group of student actors travel to a workshop in Dordogne to put on a production of Shakespeare's As You Like It as a summer project, they are as lively and high-spirited a group as one could ask for. While they are there, the young man who has the leading role begins casting cow eyes at the director's wife (Valerie Stroh), and soon she and the boy are having an affair. By the end of the summer, the wife is sufficiently charmed to wonder how she could have gotten into this situation where she deeply loves both men. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

The coming-of-age ritual of young Alexina (Valerie Stroh) is complicated by an unforseen circumstance. How can a girl become a woman if she isn't a girl in the first place? Alexina confirms this biological fact by entering into a confusing relationship with an older woman. If, after watching Alexina, you're as mixed up as the heroine/hero, rest assured you're in good company. English-language prints are unrated, but you've probably gathered that this one isn't for the kids. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

This provocative French drama is based upon the true story of Herculine Adelaide Barbin, a person who lived in the 19th century and grew up assuming that she was a woman. The character in the film is named Alexina. She had been raised in a convent and at 22-years-old, became the town school teacher in La Rochelle. There she is embraced by the locals who quickly befriend her. The trouble begins when she begins having sexual feelings for her roommate, a teacher named Sara. Their bedroom is divided by a curtain and at night, it is pure torture for Alexina who is deeply confused by the lust she feels. Eventually the two embark upon a lesbian romance until Sara remarks that Alexina loves as if she were a man. Their love affair causes a scandal amongst the townsfolk who find it disgusting. Later, Alexina is examined by a physician who discovers that "she" is also a "he," in short, Alexina is a hermaphrodite. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

Femmes De Personne is a French "feminist" film that comes off as slightly misogynistic (not to mention misanthropic) at times. Is it possible to be happy in business and still be happy in bed? The four leading ladies, all successful career women, don't seem particularly blissful. On the contrary, their boudoir activity seems to be as much a trial as going to work each morning. Femmes De Personne was directed by novelist Christopher Frank, most of whose books are variations on the theme "It's miserable at the top". ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

A gorgeous woman takes it upon herself to make a man fall for her, whether he likes it or not, in this romantic comedy. Gaspard (Jean-Pierre Cassel) is a successful musician who owns a large estate in the country; he lives a quiet life with few distraction, and prefers to keep it that way. However, Gaspard's peace is disturbed one day when he gets into a minor traffic accident with Felicia (Brigitte Bardot), a beautiful but eccentric divorcee driving a Rolls-Royce. Felicia is immediately taken with Gaspard, but he doesn't much care for her; sensing a challenge, Felicia makes it her goal to turn Gaspard's head and make him fall in love with her. However, the harder Felicia tries, Gaspard puts up an even greater fight, and their potential romance turns into a high-stakes battle of wits. While Brigitte Bardot was still lovely and glamorous at 35 when she made L'Ours et la Poupee, she was nearing the end of her career as Europe's greatest female star; within five years, she would retire from acting. Collectors take note: though this film was originally shot and released in Eastmancolor, at least one U.S. video release issued the picture in a dubbed, black-and-white version. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi